New Pieces

Here are a few more pieces that I completed last week. I've developed a new process where I work on four pieces at once. This allows me to be a little more loose in the direction I decide to go with each piece. For a while I was siting at my desk in my "studio" and wringing my hands trying to figure out what to do with the blank canvas that was staring me in the face.

This new approach allows me to complete 2-4 pieces every other day and not feel overwhelmed with the task of completing numerous pieces for the upcoming River Festival. The pieces end up looking pretty similar, but that's not all bad.

Just Us, another mini collage

Sunset Sparrow, 6x6

Introducing...

The Baldys! After much coercion, Lisa got herself a blog. Finally! I must say that there have been pretty regular posts, but we'll see if she can keep that up or if she will join the lowly ranks of those of us with weekly posts or less.

Swingin'

Em and I took Ellie to the park for a little ride on the swings. She absolutely loved it. Get a load of that chunky little leg. Love it!

Here she is looking a little perplexed. Perhaps the older boys that were playing basketball nearby had her a little curious.

Ellie and her BFF Annie again. I actually think she is getting a little tired of Em and shoving Annie in her face because we just aren't getting the reaction from Ellie that we did the first time they were officially introduced.

Ellie got baptized on Sunday, so family was in town for a majority of the weekend. Other than that, Chris and I went to Lidia's, I got a pedicure and got to see my parents. Hey, life is good.

I have completed eight pieces in the last week, so there is progress being made in that area. I also sold a piece on Etsy. I tried my hand at staging a piece and maybe that is what did the trick. That or the free shipping.

Mini Me Collages

I just put a new teeny tiny mini me collage on Etsy. Click on the image at the right. It's only $10! That's $10, people! Free shipping if you aren't local. You can't beat that!

The itty bitty collage is the first of many as I just placed an order with Dick Blick for several more 2.75" x 2.75" canvases. They are just too cute, plus I'm donating several to the children's First Treasures tent at the River Festival. Stay tuned.

Mad Cooking Skills

Feels like I've been away forever. I returned from Scottsdale late Friday night and I was exhausted. On Saturday, we had plans to have the in-laws over for dinner, but it was all on Chris. He had just attended our monthly cooking class in my absence and was raving about what he had learned. So, he put his money where his mouth was...literally. He made Grand Street pork chops (which are brined overnight and then breaded...think country fried pork chop), creamy mashed potatoes (we used our new potato ricer...well, not new since we got it as a wedding gift, but new to us and it is a must for mashed potato lovers...Moe?), fresh green beans with brown sugar and toasted pecans, orange and cranberry salad with a homemade orange vinaigrette and...you will not believe this...phyllo wrapped brownies topped with chocolate ganache, drizzled with white chocolate Gran Marnier sauce and fresh raspberry puree. WHAT!? It was so great. It puts my mad cooking skills to shame. That boy can cook AND bake AND he helped clean the house in advance of the party. Jump back.

Since all of Saturday was spent preparing for the party, I was finally able to get some work done for the River Festival coming up in June. May is booked, so I must get a few things done prior to the show. Here are a few pieces I completed on Sunday. Agh! Yes...those are sparrows. More birds.

BFFs

Ellie and Annie discovered each other last week and now they are BFFs. Annie licks Ellie's hands and Ellie giggles uncontrollably. It's so sweet!

It's been a cloudy, cold spring so far with SNOW on Saturday. Give me a break. There are a few hints of spring, but I'm ready for warm weather.

I'm off to Phoenix on Tuesday morning, so until next time...

New Commissions

Amy asked me to produce two commission pieces...one for Madison on her first birthday and one for her mom. Together the two pieces represent five generations of women from her family beginning with her great grandmother Marie. Each of them have been given the middle name Marie. It's a pretty neat gift for family or something just to commemorate your family.

Mario's Miracle? How about Gayle's Miracle?

Forget Mario for a moment! We still love him, but more importantly is the fact that Gayle made the Sports Illustrated cover with her miraculous seats right behind the basket. Sweet!

I'm still on cloud nine, but maybe not as much as GT.

March Madness, Baby!

Really nothing is better in this world than March Madness. Nope, not even Christmas. I go through withdrawals after I hear One Shining Moment at the end of the tournament and come to to the realization that basketball is over until Late Night in the Phog rolls around in the fall.

What a year for Kansas Athletics! We were lucky enough to witness an Orange Bowl win and then to go on to win the NCAA tournament in the manner that we did was simply amazing. I'm still in disbelief! I have to admit that I thought the game was over with 2 minutes to go, but we hung on and the stars aligned. Everything went our way for once. Mario Chalmers hit the biggest shot in Kansas basketball history, possibly in the history of the NCAA tournament. This is the game that will be talked about for decades. Truly a miracle!

My brother was crazy enough to drive 18 hours from Bozeman, Montana to be in Lawrence for the championship game. Towards the end of the game, I was beginning to imagine his drive back on Tuesday following a heartbreaking loss. Turns out it was the craziest, but most rewarding, trip for a Jayhawk fan who isn't lucky enough to be surrounded by fans that share his love for KU basketball without traveling halfway across the country.

Chris and I left for Lawrence following the game and headed to Mass St. to meet Nick. He had clearly been having a great time along with the other 40,000 people that had flocked to the heart of Lawrence. There were babies in strollers and toddlers, who will clearly not remember the miracle game. There were couches burning in front of the Beta house. Fist fights over stolen beer. Intoxicated, INTOXICATED students. But it was all worth it. Chris loved having a beer at The Wheel. We stayed until last call and made it back to KC by 3 a.m. Still too jazzed to sleep, we watched the last 20 minutes of the game and One Shining Moment one more time before bed.

Did any of you see the "Stay Classy, Lawrence" ads all over the Internet? Apparently, this fan didn't.

OK...so I tried to upload a video of the celebration, but after 30 minutes it appears to be way to large to upload. Sorry.

Rock Chalk Jayhawk.

Mario's Miracle

More on this later...